


Lay with me, I'll lay with you.

by fairdeath



Category: Free!
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Implied Relationships, M/M, Sleepovers, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-25
Updated: 2013-11-25
Packaged: 2018-01-02 15:05:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1058225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fairdeath/pseuds/fairdeath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Slowly, each time that Nagisa had come to his home, they had formed an unspoken tradition. Rei would read one of his favourite novels, paying too much attention to the words on the page, and Nagisa would tuck himself under Rei’s left arm and pretend to pay attention as Rei lay along his bed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lay with me, I'll lay with you.

**Author's Note:**

> Did dentists sponsor me to write this? The world may never know.  
> Title from "[Toothpaste Kisses](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_tR5cCtGtE)" by the Maccabees.

By the time Rei had been a member of the Iwatobi Swim Club for six months, it had slithered its way into his routine. As soon as he had finished his homework for the weekend on Friday night, sun long disappeared behind the horizon, as per usual; Nagisa knocked on his front door, grinning cheekily, his favourite pillow tucked in a tight embrace across his chest. When Rei opened the door for the small boy, he, like always, threw one of his arms around Rei’s neck, buried his face in said neck, offered a small, yet oh-too excited ‘hello!’ before he let his arm fall from the boy, who was left tongue tied and cheeks tainted with pink. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to how easily and openly the small boy showed his affection.

Nagisa, always so energetic, bounded towards Rei’s room. He jumped onto the bed he had grown to become familiar with, arms spread and a look of contentment splayed across his face. Rei soon followed the boy’s footsteps into his room and aimed to put his books away from his studies. After his bookcase and schoolbag had been filled with their respective books, his hands retrieved a novel he had read all too much. The cover of the book, tattered by age and use, was withered with love. The spine of the book had begun to fall apart, threads holding the pages together had begun to fray.

Slowly, each time that Nagisa had come to his home, they had formed an unspoken tradition. Rei would read one of his favourite novels, paying too much attention to the words on the page, and Nagisa would tuck himself under Rei’s left arm and pretend to pay attention as Rei lay along his bed.

Rei was never able to lie to himself and say that he didn’t look forward to this part of his Friday.

Somewhere along the lines, Rei has begun to read the words aloud this time. He had felt Nagisa’s head lift slightly in surprise; Rei had never read aloud to him! With his head lifting swiftly, the scent of Nagisa’s apple scented shampoo wafted its way into Rei’s nostrils Rei told himself sternly that he had begun to read aloud because this novel was his favourite, and he thought it was important that Nagisa remember at least a tiny portion of the masterpiece. The small blond shifted slightly to get a better view of the pages, eyes following along with the words as they left Rei’s lips. Still, though, he kept his head nestled on the edge of Rei’s chest, left hand gripping the fabric of the blue haired boy’s shirt ever so slightly.

Rei pretended he didn’t find it to be the cutest thing he’d ever seen.

He let the words leave his mouth, dance in the air and fill their ears with the syllables that came of his voice. He knew that Nagisa was able to feel the vibrations emanating from his chest; he could hear Nagisa’s content purrs every so often. As each he finished each sentence, he could feel Nagisa’s grip on the fabric of his shirt tightly as they reached an intense scene in the novel, and he felt the grip slowly dissipate with the tension of the novel. At some point of his vocal reading, Rei felt the small boy that was pinned to his side yawn and nuzzle his face into his pectoralis major before a high pitched content sigh fell from thin lips and his ear was replaced to its prior position.

Reading the words he’d grown too familiar with, he was able to finish sentences when his eyes drifted shut with exhaustion. He forced himself to continue, though; Nagisa’s body was warm and soft and pressed against him like a small child’s would, and he was afraid that if he stopped, the body would cease to cling to him so tightly. His words progressively grew more drawn out, his jaw fell into a yawn too often and his head felt heavy. With a sigh, he closed the book, watching tiny dust particles leave the edges of the book. The harshness of the pages colliding and staying together was echoed with feather light breaths and the smallest hint of kitten-level snores. A confused noise dripped from Rei’s lips, paired with a questioning cock of his head. A high and soft sigh sounded from below him, and he felt the fabric of his shirt contort and twist in the grip of the warm hand still strewn across his stomach.

Nagisa had fallen asleep at some point, and since then, he had somehow glued himself to Rei’s side, intertwined their legs together and crumpled a good section of his shirt within his tiny hand. The taller boy realized at that moment; there’s a subdivision of the times Nagisa is the cutest thing he’s ever seen, and this one takes the cake as well as his heart that is beating so hard and heavy in his chest that he’s sure Nagisa will be woken up by the sound, heavy sleeping be damned. When his too-warm cheeks are tickled by the base of his red frames, he recognized how hard his lips had formed into a smile.

He decided that it was time to sleep when he had gone to rub the sleep from his eyes and completely bypassed the fact he had glasses still perched on his nose. It was more that he struggled to see through the dirtied glass than the feeling of hard frames where air should have been, though. He was beyond exhausted, apparently.

Sliding the red frames from his face, not bothering to clean them before folding the fragile wings and placing them on his bedside table, his jaw clicked in recognition of the yawn far too large for his adolescent body. Weathered book more carefully placed on the wooden perch and the artificial light from the lamp beside him extinguished, he returned to his previous position, the only difference being that his right hand was now spread across his stomach, index finger brushing one of Nagisa’s knuckles on each exhale. Within moments, he realized that this position was not going to lull him to sleep, but rather keep him awake. His neck was sore from being supported by pillows insufficiently for the last three or so hours, and he knew sleeping on his side would prove _much_ easier to sleep on.

Part of him wished, for only a moment, he had the heart to push Nagisa off of his chest and left arm, enabling him to turn and face his door so he could sleep how he always did; with his hand together under his pillow, and his legs curls just slightly. This minute part of him was quietened when he heard a small whine from the boy wrapped against him, followed by a crying and pained voice ‘Rei-chan,’ tired lips barely bothering to form the ‘n’. He would deny his heart swelled at the sound of his name, and soon after broke from the tone. He watched the small boy’s forehead crease and contort, eyebrows following suit, until his delicate face showed pain and sadness. The pale moonlight that cascaded across the small boy illuminated his hunched over shoulders, as if he was shielding himself from something. ‘Please don’t go,’ the tiny boy whimpered, mouth twisted into a frown as the three syllables broke the air. It hurt Rei’s heart. He couldn’t bear to hurt his boy – be it in a dream or in real life, they both hurt him. He couldn’t wake the sleeping beauty, either. He might want to leave Rei’s arms and leave him cold and alone and he couldn’t bear to even think of that.

Rei’s right arm slowly wrapped its way over Nagisa’s tiny frame, fingers dancing across his hip, drawing mindless patterns along his skin, raising goose bumps slowly in the moonlight. He rotated his hips, and the rest of his body followed suit. Slowly, Rei lifted his left arm and placed his hand at the base of Nagisa’s skull, slowly weaving his fingers between the golden locks. His right hand slowed with the patterns that laced over the adorable boy in his arms, and slowly worked its way towards the blond’s waist, hidden beneath the white fabric of his oversized shirt. Nagisa’s unconscious self leaned towards Rei, his touch acknowledged, the deep frown lines on his face lightening significantly. A small smile hidden beneath his cautious face, Rei wrapped his arm further around the small boy, almost reaching the other side of his waist, before he drew the small boy into his significantly larger frame, interlocking their bodies.

Rei didn’t fail to miss the feeling of Nagisa burrowing his head under Rei’s chin, or Nagisa’s small hand crumpling more of his shirt in its grasp, despite his body being significantly less stiff and calmer. He did; however, miss the kiss that Nagisa – still very much asleep – thankfully and lovingly pressed into the skin on his manubrium.

He was too busy working his left hand further into Nagisa’s golden locks and pressing a tender kiss to his hair to notice, is all.

**Author's Note:**

> but really dentists did sponsor this piece of trash


End file.
